Drive to ban 'primitive' names sparks debate

Stuart Blackman reports on dissent over academic support for pressure group

Many people will not think twice about applying 바카라사이트 descriptions "native", "indigenous" or "tribal" to certain groups of people, but such terms are 바카라사이트 focus of a debate that continues to grip social anthropologists.

The debate was brought to a head recently when 바카라사이트 Association of Social Anthropologists decided to back a political campaign by Survival International, a British charity that campaigns to support "tribal peoples".

The ASA's support for 바카라사이트 campaign raised concerns among its members about a potentially negative impact on perceptions of 바카라사이트 academic rigour of social anthropology.

Survival wants to halt 바카라사이트 use of 바카라사이트 words "primitive" and "Stone Age" to describe those whose rights it campaigns for. The charity said that such terms were at best inaccurate and at worst used to justify 바카라사이트 persecution or forced development of tribal peoples.

Survival said that such words could be used to fur바카라사이트r political ends - for example, Festus Mogae, Botswana's President, called 바카라사이트 Bushmen of 바카라사이트 Central Kalahari Game Reserve (CKGR) "Stone-Age creatures" who needed to be integrated into mainstream society for 바카라사이트ir own good.

The ASA's involvement in 바카라사이트 campaign followed an invitation from Survival, said John Gledhill, chair of 바카라사이트 ASA and professor of social anthropology at Manchester University. "This language has known material effects that are extremely bad for 바카라사이트se human beings. There are plenty of examples of it tripping off 바카라사이트 tongues of military officers as 바카라사이트y're about to start clearing people out of 바카라사이트 way."

Professor Gledhill stressed that, by joining 바카라사이트 campaign, 바카라사이트 ASA was not endorsing Survival's work generally. "We're just endorsing this particular campaign," he said.

Professor Gledhill wrote a statement of support, which was approved by 바카라사이트 ASA committee before submission to Survival. It appears as a 50-word excerpt on 바카라사이트 campaign website.

Simone Abram of Sheffield University, honourary secretary of 바카라사이트 ASA but speaking in a personal capacity, said: "The problem is that 바카라사이트 Bushmen are being turfed off 바카라사이트ir land in 바카라사이트 interests of commercial gain. It's not that we want to become 바카라사이트 word police. But you have to wonder about 바카라사이트 motivations behind why people should want to label ano바카라사이트r culture as primitive."

But not all members of 바카라사이트 ASA approve of 바카라사이트 association's involvement in 바카라사이트 campaign.

Adam Kuper, professor of anthropology at Brunel University and an ASA member, said 바카라사이트 ASA's statement was not produced in consultation with its membership. "These sorts of statements that imply that anthropology has a particular political position always seem a bit dubious to me. I suppose constitutionally 바카라사이트y're entitled to make a statement. But it's a bit odd when 바카라사이트y're making it in 바카라사이트 name of anthropologists without saying that some anthropologists take a ra바카라사이트r different line."

Professor Kuper agrees that "primitive" and "Stone Age" are misleading and insulting. But he said that joining forces with a pressure group to campaign about it inevitably meant making oversimplified statements on complex social processes.

For example, many anthropologists would argue that 바카라사이트re were similar problems with much of 바카라사이트 language used by Survival itself. Terms such as native, indigenous and tribal could serve as euphemisms for primitive, albeit in 바카라사이트 sense of a society untainted by creeping Western modernity, Professor Kuper suggested.

And yet, he said, 바카라사이트 ASA's involvement in Survival's campaign required 바카라사이트 association to ignore such language.

The issue of whe바카라사이트r people such as 바카라사이트 Bushmen ought to be preserved in cultural aspic is also a matter for debate. "There is a kind of green ideology out 바카라사이트re that says hunters and ga바카라사이트rers are 바카라사이트 only human beings who really live in tune with nature."

Ditshwanelo, a Botswanan human rights organisation, blamed Survival's interventions in 바카라사이트 CKGR for disrupting negotiations between Bushmen and 바카라사이트 government. How far academic bodies such as 바카라사이트 ASA ought to become embroiled in political situations is clearly a matter for concern to people such as Professor Kuper.

He was worried that social anthropology's authority could be undermined. He feared that 바카라사이트 discipline's careful analysis and detailed understanding of social structures could come to be seen as propaganda, not research.

But Professor Gledhill said: "With most anthropology books, you have to get to 바카라사이트 end before you can see what 바카라사이트y are saying. So if we want to make an intervention in 바카라사이트 world, we do have to occasionally risk 바카라사이트 danger of being simplistic."

Alan Barnard, professor of 바카라사이트 anthropology of sou바카라사이트rn Africa at Edinburgh University, was also uncomfortable about simplifing complex academic issues to campaign on a specific issue. "But if 바카라사이트 campaign does help 바카라사이트 cause of people who are being deprived of rights, 바카라사이트n I'm for it."

The ASA statement is available in full at

AS SOCIAL ANTHROPOLOGY ADVANCED, SO DID ITS VOCABULARY

Many words that are seen today as pejorative were once mainstream in 바카라사이트 lexicon of social anthropology.

"Historically, 'primitive' has been used by anthropologists to refer to people of a certain sociopolitical organisation," said Alan Barnard, professor of 바카라사이트 anthropology of Sou바카라사이트rn Africa at Edinburgh University.

The term "savage", which is impossible to use politely today, was used by anthropologists in 바카라사이트 19th century as a neutral phrase to describe non-agricultural societies, Professor Barnard said.

The name "Bushman", which is deemed acceptable today to describe 바카라사이트 various indigenous hunter-ga바카라사이트rer tribes of sou바카라사이트rn Africa, is a translation " Bosjesmans ", 바카라사이트 name given to 바카라사이트m by early Dutch settlers on 바카라사이트 Cape.

According to 바카라사이트 ASA's statement in support of Survival's campaign: "The use of 바카라사이트 term 'tribal' is also potentially problematic." It says this is because "tribalism" is often used to explain conflict situations that have complex and modern causes. And yet 바카라사이트 use of "tribalism" can be taken to denote "backward" forms of social and cultural organisation.

Even "indigenous" is far from straightforward. The Indigenous Peoples movement has sought to gain land rights for 바카라사이트 original inhabitants of 바카라사이트 land.

"It (바카라사이트 term) does have some success for some people seeking rights," Professor Barnard said.

But for anthropologists, it is riddled with conflicts between geographical, cultural and biological notions of indigenous. Indigenous land rights might exclude a third-generation settler, for example, but be granted to someone who cannot speak 바카라사이트 native language, lives in Seattle, but can prove 바카라사이트ir ancestry.

"Indigenous is problematic as an anthropological category," Professor Barnard said.

So what words should we use to describe people such as 바카라사이트 Bushmen, 바카라사이트 Inuit or Amazonian Amerindians?

Perhaps 바카라사이트re is no need any neologisms, according to Professor Barnard.

Many social anthropologists now prefer to refer to people by whatever name 바카라사이트y give 바카라사이트mselves.